Northgate OmniKey: Gen1

Northgate OmniKey: Gen1

Part number	560-0-0000001 (some 560-0-0000003)
Branding	Northgate Computer Systems
Manufacturer	Northgate Computer Systems
Product family	Northgate OmniKey
Layouts	102 Key ANSI
Keyswitches	Alps SKCM White or Alps SKCM Blue
Interface	5-Pin DIN female connector. PC/XT and PC/AT protocols.
Years of production	1988 - 1989
Discontinued	Yes

Northgate (re)branded non-Omnikey Alps-based keyboards both before and after the Omnikeys came out. Northgate called those "C/T" (Clicky-Tactile) in their ads. The majority of the ones I've (hellothere) seen have Alps key switches. Just keep in mind that if it doesn't have an "Omni Key" badge in the upper left (northeast) corner or an "Omni-Key" (or some spelling variant of "OmniKey" or "Omni") sticker on the bottom of the keyboard, it's probably not an Omni Key. HOWEVER, other companies did buy and rebadge Omni Key keyboards, too!

The majority of Omni Key keyboards have a vendor ID ("VEND") labeled on the bottom of the case. The first generation vendor ID is "111."

Note the gold "Omni Key/102" badge. It makes this first generation of Omni Key keyboards easy to recognize.

Yes, this model is called an "Omni Key/102," with a space between "Omni" and "Key." This was trademarked in 1989. The next generation is the "OmniKey."

Standard Features

• 102 keys (the 102nd key is the = key in the numeric keypad cluster)
• Attached cable
• "Smaller" case (compared to Gen3/Gen4)
• Early models had a black painted metal key switch mounting plate. Later models switched to an unpainted metal key mount plate (possibly silver Cd plated)
• Key switch mount plate attached with screws to upper case
• Metal bottom case
• A / X switch (AT or XT protocols) on bottom of unit; no DIP switches
• Removable plastic strip to write out what your function keys do
• Plastic flip-out feet with rubber "shoes"
• Some models had an ON / OFF switch on bottom of unit

Switches

The Omni Key/102 is the only Omni Key model that was available with Alps SKCM (the "pine" variant) white clicky switches or Alps SKCM blue clicky switches. The majority of these models were made with blue Alps, which is the main reason that people search for these keyboards.

Keycaps & Layout

The keycaps are mostly ABS double-shot. Most keys have black legends. The shift keys have green legends, the alt keys have blue legends, and both the Esc and control keys have red legends. The "Print Screen" key has a green legend for "SysRq" on the front of the cap and the "Pause" key has a red legend for "Break" on the front of the cap.

Early models had a standard AT layout with a split right shift (i.e. a shift key to the left of the backslash/pipe key), 1u backspace, and a BAE key. Most models had a standard-size (2u) backspace, BAE key, and shifted the left Ctrl key to the left of the A key. This made a rather unique bottom row of F9, F10, Alt, Caps Lock, Spacebar, ~, Ctrl, left arrow, down arrow, right arrow, 0, ., Enter.

Notes from Polecat

I now have 60 Gen1 Northgates listed in my database. Here are some statistics for particular features:

• 1u backspace & On / Off switch - 2 (very early)
• Black painted key mount plate - 4 (early; not known on all examples)
• Sefco red label (FCC# FU44S2 KB-555) - 21 (early)
• Generic version - No OmniKey102 badge. Warranty label and different inspection number format - 3 (late)

The later 102 models (post-Sefco label) didn't have an FCC ID, so the only FCC number I have on a Gen1 is FU44S2 KB-555. Chyros has commented on this in one or more reviews and the speculation is that the KB-555 may be related to the Focus FK-555 keyboards (which are not the same as the Northgate 102, but were probably built in the same factory). Strangely, one Gen1 102 showed up on ebay with a Focus FK-555 label on the bottom. As I stated above, 21 of 60 examples had the red Sefco label, but for some reason, only this one had the R-3 and 560-0-0000003 model number!

Gallery (more pics in the "References" section)

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  Standard back label

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  Alps SKCM white switches

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  The naked keyboard

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  AT / XT Switch

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External links

• Bob Tibbet -- Northgate keyboard repair page
• Chyros' review -- YouTube